Timbaland holds the rare distinction among musicians as not only being able to find steady production placements but to cash in big on them as well.
The superstar composer is riding high after executive producing the new posthumous Michael Jackson album and scoring the soundtrack to the FOX’s upcoming Hip-Hop drama, Empire. And few can forget the magic (and money) he’s made with Justin Timberlake. Behold, the superproducer.
No worries, diehard Timbo fans. The longtime Jay Z/Missy Elliott collaborator wasn’t futile in his efforts in saving all the good beats for himself, allegedly. In a sitdown with REVOLT TV, he speaks on how he finally “found himself” with his next solo album, renamed Opera Noir from the earlier reported Textbook Timbo.
“Black opera. It’s a culture thing; it’s truths and it’s just about life in general,” he explains. “As a man, I found who I am. It’s more of a sound. It’s Timbaland’s Chronic. You know how Dr. Dre has his Chronic? I finally made my Chronic.”
Dr. Dre’s 1992 debut has easily become a benchmark of not only Hip-Hop album excellence, but in popular culture as well. Where as the West Coast classic featured a bevy of artists all underneath Dr. Dre’s Death Row imprint’s umbrella, Timbaland says all he needed was a more contained roster to achieve greatness.
“Me and my new artist–her name is V. Just me and her. And Cee-Lo. That’s it,” he says, counting off the cadre he enlisted. “When [Opera Noir] comes out and you see the whole package, you’ll understand why. You’ll see it, and you’ll be like, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen nothing like this.'”
Check out the full interview over at REVOLT where he also goes into about making Xscape, the aforementioned Michael Jackson album.
—
Photo: Brian To/WENN.com
